Love Flavored Ramen
by FoxwolfJackson
Summary: A one-shot story written while at work to kill any plot bunnies floating around in my head. First-person in the point of view of Ayame as she serves the number one hyperactive ninja.


Author's Notes: I've never done a one-shot before, so I decided to do one. I've also never had much success in the Naruto fandom in writing fiction, so hopefully this one-shot at least does something. This story is written in first-person from Ayame's point of view. Why? I felt like it. I rarely have a reason to do the things I do; merely I do it out of impulse.

Without further ado, I present to you Love Flavored Ramen.

Short Story:

No Eyes; No Future

Many people see me for the job that I do. After all, I work at a ramen stand and help my father make some of the best ramen in Konoha. I have been praised for being able to execute such intricate and advanced ramen-making techniques in emulating the incredible ramen that my father has always created.

Yet, I have always attempted to perceive myself as more than the simple exterior of a ramen chef. I have always attributed myself to being a multi-layered girl. I have always considered myself to be more than what meets the public eye. I always have tried to rise above and beyond the image that I have and transcend the quasi-reality of being the daughter of a ramen chef.

My thoughts are infinitely more refined and complex than people take me for. Many assume that since I live in a hidden village, I work as a chef, and I am a young girl that my intelligence is lacking. I assure those people when I can that my thoughts are far from simply doing my nails, checking my hair in the mirror, and talking about boys.

Not many know this about me but I love writing poetry and music. Reading poetry and novels is a hobby I enjoy when I am not making ramen with my father. I play a piano at home and have become quite proficient with the instrument. I simply love reading and writing sonnets and I enjoy symphonic and orchestral works. I always have had a dream to one day be a professor of literature at a high-level university.

Many will question why do I continue to live in Konoha instead of attending a prestigious school for either writing or music. The answer is simple on the outside but has many facets and conditions that make it very complex; this reason mirrors the complex and three-dimensional persona that I have.

I suppose I could begin by saying that I have an immense respect for the shinobi of the Hidden Leaf Village. It is through the tireless efforts put into missions by these hardworking ninja that the Fire Nation has enjoyed its peace and prosperity.

Granted, there have been slip-ups but that is to be expected; nobody and nothing is perfect in our world. The notion of perfection would place them among gods and nobody, not even with the recent incident of the feared and infamous Madara, can be mortal and a god.

I enjoy-sometimes even envy-the simple lives that these ninja possess. Granted, they have their own difficulties in their lives. They do, after all, have to learn to fight in hand-to-hand combat and learn their ninja techniques. They have to learn and master their elemental affinities and some even learn illusionary techniques and medical practices. Some families have a natural aptitude for certain aspects of the ninja culture whereas others have to work constantly to attain the level that they are.

I enjoy serving the very people who put their lives on the line in every mission to make sure we are safe and secure in our freedoms and lives. Many people take the freedom we have in this village for granted without understanding just how necessary the shinobi force in this village is. This is the primary reason I stay in Konoha. I enjoy knowing that my meager food services provide comfort in an otherwise stressful lifestyle.

As a bonus on the side, I would like to take this opportunity to say that I enjoy cooking as well. Therefore, it is not like I am forcing myself to serve the community of people who serve me; instead it is taking what I love doing and spreading that love to everyone who patronized my family's ramen stand.

The second reason I continue to work this meager, yet fulfilling lifestyle is simpler and yet infinitely more complex than anyone can imagine. There is an oft used phrase that everyone seems to throw around with varying levels of weight. "Opposites attract" is a phrase I have heard many times in my life by and from many people.

"Hey, hey, Ayame! Is your father here?"

I had been shaken out of my reverie by a certain blonde ninja with a bright orange jumpsuit. Sometimes I questioned his choice of wardrobe; my only assumption is that he does not wear that outfit on missions. After all, is not the point of a ninja to be stealthy and not seen?

"I am afraid not, Naruto. He was not feeling too well this morning. Would you like your usual bowl of miso ramen?"

"Bowl?"

I had to laugh internally as I realized the mistake I had made around the hyperactive ninja.

"Would you like your usual _three_ bowls of miso ramen?"

"Just two today."

"Is something wrong, Naruto?"

"No, no, no, I just have a lot on my mind."

"I have time to kill while the ramen cooks," I replied. They say bartending is a job where you get to know your customers and talk to them. While being inebriated does grant a certain level of trust between the customer and the listener, I think that it is a greater victory if a customer does not need to have their mental condition altered for them to open up. Just the fact that Naruto is opening up to me about his problem right now without any influence is a testament in itself.

I know he trusts me; after all, that's why he always comes back here everyday when he wasn't on a mission. I see him a lot and he usually talks to us about whatever is on his mind.

"Well, Ayame, what do you do when you like someone?"

Whether he realized it or not, that was a loaded question.

"Well, I tend to go about my life normally as if I did not like the person. If they do not like who I am normally, I think it's safe to say that we would not exactly be a good couple."

"Well, how do you know if they like you or not if you don't do anything to make them watch you in the first place?"

That was a rather intriguing question. I never actually had thought about that considering the person I liked already talks to me.

"I never thought about that, Naruto. The person I like talks to me and knows me how I normally am."

I regretted those words. Nobody aside from my parents know about how I read or play piano. Not many people here even care about that; they are all more interested in fighting and athletics.

"You seem like a really great person, Ayame! I mean, we talk all the time and I know you really well. I'm sure he does too!"

If only you knew, Naruto. If only I knew, Naruto.

"Thank you, Naruto. Here, your first bowl is done."

I handed him the bowl and he took it with almost fervent reverence. I already started making the next bowl as he almost literally inhaled the first bowl in its entirety. It was always a wonder how he could eat so fast, but we never questioned it. Ninja can be fascinating people sometimes. I was working on making second and last bowl

"Well, Naruto, who is it that you like?"

It was a far shoot and I knew taking a leap of faith like that was stupid. It was common knowledge he liked Sakura Haruno.

"It isn't Sakura," he replied. I dropped the spoon I was holding in shock. Was there the possibility that he could-no, I cannot quite assume things like that.

"You moved on from her?"

"I figured out that she would always see me as a teammate and a brother figure rather than as a date..."

"I see."

Was Naruto finally becoming more logical?

"It was a night that I was on a mission that I realized all this."

"'Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary,'" I quoted with a smile. My smile only slightly faltered when it hit me that he wouldn't know about that.

"Well, it wasn't midnight, but yeah. I realized there was someone else who liked me all this time," he said. I froze. Could it be that he knew? Was I obvious?

"W-well, Naruto, that's great!" I said to him with a smile as my heart raced so fast. I never thought that this day would come.

"Yeah, she's so amazing. I can't believe I never noticed her before. Well, she usually keeps to herself so I never really saw it until now," he explained. I nodded in silence since I was unable to form words. I handed him the bowl of his finished ramen. He unknowingly left me in suspense as he finished the last bowl of ramen.

"I'm glad you did, Naruto."

He put the money on the counter to pay for the ramen.

"Yeah, believe it! I'm even going to go talk to Hinata at her place right now to talk about it more with her," Naruto said with a huge smile.

... wait... did he mean he was talking about Hinata who was in the academy with him?

"Good... luck," I said as best I could as I realized he wasn't talking about me. I thought he would have noticed my distress, but I assumed wrong. Ninja are people of simplicity after all. With that infectiously cute smile, he waved a farewell before he left.

I knew what I had known for years. I wasn't a ninja; I didn't possess any skills that he would've found interesting. I was just normal to him... and to a person as simple as a ninja, that's all I had to know to realize that he would never notice me. The one person who ever made me have feelings for someone of the opposite gender would never notice me now. Why I fell for someone so different from myself, I suppose I will never know. I just know that unlike myself, he puts his emotions on the outside. There is no games, hidden meanings, or ulterior motives. He didn't tell me to make me jealous to try harder. It wasn't like him. As much as I wished it was, I realized that his simplicity was what I loved about him. Yet, he didn't show the same feelings for me. He liked Hinata and she liked him.

... and that was all I needed to close the stand for the day, go home, and express my feelings of my naive loss face first in my pillow.


End file.
